The Queen of Second Place
by blacklipgloss98
Summary: Gwen Woodlock is after the new kid, Duncan Matthews. But the only promblem is Heather Carter. The thing is, a dance is coming up, after coming in second place all her life, Gwen is determined to make first place this time, Knocking Heather out the way.
1. Intro

I have this theory that everybody has a talent. Rich,poor,clueless-it doesnt matter. I honestly believe that every human being on earth is born with one special gift. The problem is,not all talents are created equal.

People think that talent means you sing or dance or act. But those are the glory talents, the ones that everyone wants,and for every diva out there,about a million other people are walking around with one lesser talent. This guy I know Cody, his talent is always choosing the lojgest line-not the one that looks the longest,the one that takes the longest. There can be twenty people in one line and two in the other,and if Cody gets in the two peron line,thats all its going to take. Say he's at the store-the cash register will they finally get it running again,the preson first in line will want to use about five hundred coupons. Then the next guy will try to write a check with no ID and the cashier will call the manager but none will e able to find him because he's on break and..you get the idea.

This other guy i know-Trent-actually, we used to go out but thats other story-his talent is finding parking. Theres no place to popular no lot to crowed. Roseberry parking lot,beach,the movies, anywhere. If the hottest band in the country were playing free somewhere with only hundred spaces. Trent would get there 10minutes before the group went on and still get a place right in front. His theory is that other people dont believe there will be a good space,so they dont look.

Which brings us to me,I guess.I have a talent too,and its definitely not of the glory talent is coming in second.

I am the queen of second place, the poster child for the close-but-not-close-enough. And im not saying that to make you feel sorry for me. I swear its completly true. I have a drawer full of second place ribbions. Unfortunatley, my deal doesnt end with contests. I take second place in everything, in every little aspect in my life.

In eighth grade I had hair past my waist-so long i could almost sit on it. It would have been the longest hair in school,except that Lindsey Brooks could sit on hers. So last year I cut it,and i mean really cut it. The frist day I went to school like that, Beth krik came in with a buzz cut. You could see the girls scalp. And in case you dont think hair is a good example,believe me, I've got others.


	2. Little bit more info

Briddgette was waiting for me when I got out of dentention. I had writers cramp from my middle figure to my elbow and id been concentrating so hard i felt like i'd been breathing underwater,but I still couldnt wait to tell her what I'd been up to.

"Get this!"I said."I had to write an essay about talent!"

"Your kidding me."Briddgette shook her head,her scores of a tight bouncy ponytail brushing her shoulders, we were both going through kind of a tufty hair thing last year-the difference is,her hair looks good now.

"You didnt give the theory,did you?"

"Of couse, what else?"

Briddgette knows the fact,shes intimately familiar with it,snice shes been my best friend,like forever. In case your wondering,Briddgette's talent is whistling. Again,not in the glory category,but I've at least seen whistling in music videos. Luckily for Briddgette,she' so smart she'll never have to rely on talent .The girl gets solid A's. I get mostly-you guessed it-B's.

"That ought to be good for another ten weeks of dentention."She said.

"What?Oh! I didnt tell her talent. I may be dumb, but im dont stupid."

"Your not dumb,either,"Briddgette told me loyally.

You can see why shes my best friend,but getting detention was pretty dumb. Even if it wasnt even my .Even if the forces that conspired against me were so far beyound my control that I am practically there sock if I ought to be someone else sitting in that absurdly hard chair every afternoon writing Conways essays instead of me.

Because i have excuses,believe me. I could make any sane person-which obviously excludes Conway-see my side in less than five minutes.

You know,now that im thinking about it, I'm not dumb for getting detention.

Im dumb because I'll do it again.

**Opps backing up now.  
**You know what I just realized?You dont have the first clue what im talking about. I mean,hopefully you've deduced that Briddgette is the prefect friend while takes all the fun of being a sophomore,but you dont know what **happen.** You cant begin to comprehend how the fabric of my previously ordinary life has unraveled to the point that im dodging around school wearing sunglasses and a ski cap. Counting down the days untill I graduation lets me sink into oblivion. Unfortunately,there are seven months,a summer, and two whole school years left before that happens.

But Still I havent even began to mentioned Fourteen Karat Heather Carter.


	3. Fourteen Karat Carter

*Just a quckie. Umm My second story third chapter. I say I kinda like this story better than my other one, btw the whole story takes point in Gwens pov. Soo yeah enojoy:]

Lets start about Fourteen Karat because even thinking about that phony,scheming soc makes me want to there were anyway to leave her out of this story,you'd better believe I'd take it. Seriously,I'd pay to take it. Maybe it's true that we dont always pick our friends,but we never pick our just kind of find us somehow.

Fourteen Karat Carter found me in the lunch line the fall of freshman year.

"Geez la-weez!"She announced from behind me,in the loudest voice possible."They ought to make people get a license before they sell them Sun-In."

My hair was still long then,and the sad truth is I had gotten carried away with Sun-in over the with truly red hair should be automatically forgiven for anything they do with it anyway,by the roots I had going by October were seriously strawberry blond I'd been trying had come out a brassy orange,and my new growth looked almost brown in comparison. My mom wouldnt take me to the salon to have it fixed because she'd told me not to mess with my natural dark brown hair anyway,and being a lawyer and all,shes big on crime and punishment.

Fourteen-Karat Carter said,"You take carrottop a whole new place."

Then she tossed her prefect brown mane,rolled her brown eyes and cut right in front of me,her short preppy skirt twitching across her prefect behind. I just stood there with my mouth hanging open,completely without a comeback.I didnt even who she was yet,but that was the moment I knew I hated her and that I'd hate her the rest of my life.

"Who is that.?"I whispered to Briddgette."And how can we kill her with no one finding out?"

"Heather Carter,"Briddgette whispered back."She's in my Spanish One class,and so far all the guys have learned to say is Si senorite and muy caliente."

"Your telling me someone would miss her then."

"Afaid so."

I just stood there,grinding a clog into that rock hard cafeteria linoleum and staring daggers at the back of Miss Perfects Izod shirt. Then she had walked too far off to hear us,but she cast one last condescending look my way,tossing her hair as if the guy behind the register were fliming a shampoo commerical.

"Heather!"I spat."What kind of name is that anyway?"

Briddgette shrugged."You have to addmit it kinda fits her."

Which being true,irked me even more.

"More like fourteen Karat Carter."I grumbled."At least thats what she thinks."

"Oh,she thinks shes all of fourteen and more,"Briddgette agreed laughing."Just ingonre the girl,shes a soc."

Which was practially a compliment compared to the things we call her now. Fourteen karat carter is the most obnoxios,scheming uberwitch in the history of Hilltop High School. If my dad werent currently hogging all my free time,I'd send the girls picture to Websters,in case they need an illustration for psychopath in their next edition.

Maybe you dont have socs at your school-which is to say you probably do but you might call them something else. Snobs,preps,enormous pains in the butt...a soc is all those things and more. The word is short for social,as in socially elite and not afaid to let you know it. As in dimond dripping debutante and furture, in cross her path and she'll ruin your social life for the next four years. Are you with me now? You do have socs,right?

Anyway thats the story of Fourteen-Karat Carter,and all the good and legitimate reasons I hate her. Or actually I've barely stratched the surface,but you get the idea.


	4. Meeting Duncan Matthews

This whole in media's res approach might have worked for the Greek peots,but it's confusing the heck out of me. Not that it can be helped,snice you showed up right in the middle of things. It's just that I cant remember what you already know and what I havent told you yet. Im pretty sure I havent mentioned Duncan,hes the most imprtant part of this entire story.

You know what? Im going to skip right to him-to when I first saw him,i mean-because even though I could fill this book with all the loathe with heather{not to mention all the stuck-up,pretty things she did while we were freshmen},things didnt get really ugly between us untill this year, Untill Duncan Matthews transferred to Hilltop High and stepped into Sophomore honors English Class.

Okay,you know what again? Im going to cover that momentous day in really complete detail,but before we move on you deserve at lease five good reasons why Fourteen Karat Carter shouldnt be popular,believed, or tolerated with:

once in her entire life,has she ever had a zit,stubbly legs, or a close encounter with Sun-in.

better looking than I am does not give her the right to move in on a guy I so clearly claimed first.

has already had 4 boyfriends this year...If I were counting.

heard Fourteen Karat Carter tell Trent she pitied him for ever being seen with me and that he ought to aim higher next time if he doesnt want the whole school to think his a loser!

we up to 5 already? All right then: I happen to know of a fact that Heather cuts the tags out of her jeans so no one will find out shes not really the size 2 she claims to be.

Whew! I feel better. Now back to Duncan.

Tuesday,October 14,9:16 am.

Im not normally an obsessive person-not very obsessive anyway- but im positive thats the exact day and time I first laid eyes on Duncan Matthews. I know this because I wrote it on the cover of my blue notebook and its been there ever snice. It's almost as if I guessed how important this moment would turn out to be,as if my entire furture flashed front of my grammar glazed eyes.

Anyway,the classroom door flew open and Duncan walked in a few paces behind Principal Chris Ito,who went straight up to and started whispering with this intense look on his face. The thing is, Ito always looks like the world is counting down to nuclar war. No one pays attention anyone. Besides,suddenly there was something much better to pay attention to.

".God.,"Countrey Martin whispered,leaning across the aisle between her desk and mine."Is is hot in here or is it him?"

"Shhhh,"I whispered back."You're talking about the man I'm going to marry."

We both laughed,clapping our hands over our mouths when Conway broke off her summit with Ito long enough to shoot us a dirty look.

Even though I was laughing, I was completetly serious.I mean,not about marrying . But i knew,Somehow I just knew that Duncan was the guy I'd been waiting for,the one who was going to make everything right. If he wasnt,why did my heart leap around in my chest untill my blood felt carbonated? I could tell my cheeks were purple too-another special bonus of being born dark headed. I blush so hard I turn splotchy. Life is not fair. Which is kind of my point,But getting off track again. Anyway,Conway and Ito were yakking on,and Duncan was just standing there,looking like he wished he were anyplace else. He kept shifing his weight from one scuffed converse to the other,this hands stuffed so far into the pockets that the hem of his black t-shirt hovered an inch above the waishband of his jeans. And not that I was staring {much},but his abs were incredibly tan-something we appreciate here in California-and a line of black hair ran straight down from his navel. The hair on his head also included a Green Mohawk,interesting What else? Straight brows,chiseled jaw,and a completely prefect nose. I couldnt see his eyes then,but I could tell there were green.

Eventually Principal Ito left and Conway turned to addres us "Class,this is just transferred here from Orange County and I hope you'll make him feel welcome."

A little more detail would definitely have been appreciated. For instance, where is orange Country? People act like that place is a dot on the map,but is the size of a small country. Why did Duncan move?What did he think of Hilltop High? And most importantly,did he have a girlfriend back home?

But that was all we were getting, Her introduction completed,Conway pointed Duncan two adjacent vancant desk at the back of the started walking,dragging his feet like he already suspected the horrors of this class, in the other hand,sophomore honors English had suddenly developed the potential to become a truly rewarding learning experience.

I'll make him feel welcome,I though,cranking up my smile as he walked past.

I'll make him feel very welcome.


End file.
